Elizabeth Short was born on July 29, 1924. She was found murdered in Los Angeles, California, on January 15, 1947, and referred to as “The Black Dahlia” by the media. This was most likely due to her striking black hair and her reputation for always wearing black clothing.
Due to the gruesome manner in which she was murdered, her case was highly publicized. The murder of Elizabeth Short included the mutilation of her corpse.  Her final resting place is in Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland, California. We are going to dive deep into her short life and her brutal death. Â
Discovering The Black Dahlia
[Image via BuzzFeed Unsolved Network]
On the morning of January 15, 1947, Elizabeth Short’s naked body (The Black Dahlia) was discovered. Her body was completely severed at her waist, and all of her blood was drained from her body. Her skin was pale white.
The killer slashed the face of Elizabeth Short from the corners of her mouth to her ears.  She had several cuts on her thigh and breasts, and entire portions of flesh had been cut and removed from her. The intestines of Short were under her buttocks, and her corpse was posed with her hands over her head. Her elbows were bent down to the right, and her legs spread apart.
Medical examiners determined that she had been dead for about ten hours before her being found. The Black Dahlia, they predicted, had died the evening of January 14 or the early morning of January 15.
Several photos were taken of course of her body and her surroundings. Near her body, detectives located a heel print on the ground along with tire tracks. A cement sack containing watery blood was also found nearby.
The Autopsy
On January 16th, 1947, the autopsy was performed on The Black Dahlia. It was documented that she was 5’5 and weighed 115 pounds. She had light blue eyes, brown hair, and decayed teeth. When she was murdered, it was also, of course, discovered that her body was cut in half.Â
Her skull was not fractured, but of course had bruising on the front and right side of her scalp. She also had consistent blows to the head.  Ultimately, her cause of death was hemorrhaging from the lacerations to her face, as well as shock from blows to her head and face.
The Killer
On January 21, 1957, a call was received to the “Examiner”, the caller said to expect some souvenirs of Beth Short in the mail. A few days later, a manilla envelope was sent to “The Los Angeles Examiner” and other Los Angeles papers. They had words that were cut and pasted from newspaper clippings about The Black Dahlia’s death.
The envelope contained all of her personal information. It included her birth certificate, business cards, photos, names, and her address book. The packet had been cleaned thoroughly with gasoline (which was what Elizabeth’s body was cleaned with after the murder).
Fingerprints were sent out but could not be determined who they belonged to; they were damaged during transit. Also, the same day, a handbag was discovered along with a black suede shoe on top of a garbage can in an alley, two miles from the crime scene.  The items were recovered by the police, but again, wiped clean with gasoline.
In Closing
Elizabeth Short (The Black Dahlia) was brutally killed. Her body was cut in half, her face destroyed, and she was completely mutilated. The killer even put her body on display after the murder was done as to display and be proud of the work they had done. What drives people to do that?
All in all, her life was ended too short. It was said that had the potential to be an actress, unfortunately, she never got the opportunity to fulfill that dream. I hope wherever she is out there, Elizabeth Short is in peace, not in any pain and is happy.
I could not imagine the fear that was going through her mind when this horrific murder was happening to her. You were a beautiful woman, and I am so sorry that this happened to you.
